Fake Smiles and Flower Petals
by sunshine-in-writing
Summary: Akito is alone now that the curse has been lifted. Kureno stays at his side, but all of the other Juunishi have left to pursue their own careers, and Akito's lonely. That is, until a blond-haired, brown-eyed young man returns to him... Yaoi, Akito/Momiji


**Yo! This was a challenge issued by freaqgurl on aff. net, and I thought, "Hey! That sounds so cool! I'll do that!" her requirements were:**

**1. The author or authoress has to make a cameo appearance.**

**2. It has to be Akito/Momiji.**

**3. It can be any rating, any genre, any OOC level that you want.**

**4. She has to be mentioned as the challenger.**

**Sooo… I've fulfilled all of those requirements admirably! And because this is me we're talking about, and I can't write angst or horror or anything really depressing like that (I can **_**read **_**it, as long as it has a happy ending), THIS STORY IS VERY SWEET AND FLUFFY!!! Although it does have some very serious smut going on. I LUUURVE yaoi!!! And I love writing all of my little characters in the sexiest, smuttiest positions I can conceive of!**

**(I swear, I was completely sober when writing this.)**

**AHEM!!! AKITO IS A BOY IN THIS!!! AGAIN, THIS IS YAOI!!!**

**Right, now you can read the story.**

—

Fake Smiles and Flower Petals

—

A gust of wind blew a flurry of flower petals across the garden, several landing on the still form of a sleeping person. One caught in his blue-black hair. The man stirred in his sleep and sighed, but did not wake, one hand curling into the soft, lush grass below him. He turned his head slightly and a small smile graced his lips, before he frowned softly.

Slowly, ever so slowly, his eyelids, rimmed with coal black lashes, flickered open and his eyes, still hazy with sleep, focused on his garden. Sighing, he pushed himself up and gazed around. A hand, tanned golden from the sun, came up and brushed flower petals off of his robe, not noticing the one in his hair. He stood up slowly and walked back to his room but, instead of going inside, he hoisted himself up to sit in his large circular window to watch the road approaching the large Sohma estate. Not that he really expected anyone to arrive; hardly anyone approached the Sohmas besides their own family, and most of them had moved away.

He sighed again and tucked his hair behind his ear, dislodging the flower petal. He would never admit it in a thousand years, but without the young folk running around the extensive grounds it seemed very quiet. Ever since that girl—Tohru—had broken the curse and married Kyo, one by one the other once-cursed members had moved away, to pursue their dreams…of college, or work, or whatever.

He had more to thank Tohru for than anyone else, but Akito had rarely spoken to the girl in the five years she had lived with them. He didn't particularly feel like breaking that silence, either, to tell the truth. He may no longer be dying, may no longer be the god of the curse, but he was still terrible with people, and had no desire to speak to a girl. Even if she had saved his life and his family.

He blinked slowly. He had been working hard to build up his strength and body, with the result that he was a uniform golden-brown from head to foot, and his frame was now covered with taut, wiry muscles. Akito doubted that he would ever be a match for any one of the martial arts students among his cousins, but he no longer became sick at the drop of a hat. He was also mellowing out in his personality as well, although no one would tell him that for fear of him reverting to his old ways.

He growled quietly, annoyed with the silence. Four years ago the quiet would have been broken by now by the laughing voice of the rabbit. Annoyed by it then, Akito found himself wishing that Momiji was still around to laugh and annoy people. But he, too, had gone away to college, and hadn't been back since.

Akito's attention was caught by a car driving up to the Sohma gates and pausing. A girl got out of the passenger seat and opened the gate, and the car drove through, parking in view of Akito's window. She walked over to the driver's side and leaned against the bonnet, talking to the driver. Finally the door opened and the driver stepped out.

An older, more mature Momiji stared around at his birthplace with a small smile on his lips. The girl—red hair, Akito mused, never seen that before—hugged him and Akito almost tensed up, waiting for the poof of smoke, but of course it never came. Instead Momiji just hugged her back, smiling gratefully before going over to the trunk of the car and removing several bags. He ruffled the girl's hair (_Is she American?_ Akito wondered) and she punched him lightly, grinning, before pulling him into another hug and then getting into the car and driving out of the compound.

Momiji looked around again, and his eyes landed on Akito. They held each other's gaze for a brief moment, and then with a barely perceptible nod the ex-rabbit carried his bags into the main house and out of Akito's view.

The head of the family sat back and closed his eyes, enjoying the sun on his face. He felt unsteady inside, as though an earthquake had taken place in his stomach.

He had come back. One of them had come back to him. Akito opened his eyes, looking at his out-of-focus garden, and waited. Momiji would come to him soon.

"Akito?" Kureno appeared in his open doorway. "Momiji-san is here to see you."

"By all means, let him in," Akito drawled, turning his head to face the door. Momiji slipped inside and closed the door behind him before kneeling on a mat near the window, wearing his ever-present carefree smile. Akito remembered it.

"Okaerinasai, Momiji," he said, smiling, and finding it to be a true smile.

"Tadaima, Akito-san," Momiji returned, smiling wider, although his eyes widened slightly as he truly got a good look at the head of his family. Dear Kami…Akito was _gorgeous_. What had happened to the weak, embittered, manipulative man he had known all his life? He had turned into someone Momiji didn't know, and someone whom he would most definitely lust after.

Akito was entertaining very similar thoughts, seeing Momiji up close for the first time in three years. "So tell me," he said quietly, opening his hand for a bird to perch on his palm, "What brings you back to your old home after three years away?"

"My mother," Momiji said, eyes following the slip of Akito's yukata as it fell down his shoulder slightly. Akito's hand twitched around the bird.

"Ah yes. She is beginning to remember you again, is she not? It is not driving her mad this time, if that is what you are worried about. She seems to be taking it incredibly well, in fact, in the few times she has come to me to talk about it. She seems shaken, but fine, to realize that she has a son that she willingly forgot about." Akito watched Momiji flinch, and felt a tiny pang of guilt. He hadn't meant to sound so callous, but oh well.

"Well, that's…good." Momiji fiddled with his hands, looking around the room and trying to ignore the delicate curve of Akito's neck. "Does she…will she want to see me?"

"I don't know. That's something you'd have to ask your father." Akito sighed and hopped out of the window, walking over to the still-kneeling Momiji. "I may be the head of this family, but many things go on around me without me noticing. I'm sure your mother will be fine." He laid a hand on Momiji's head, unconsciously stroking those beautiful blonde curls slightly and enjoying his submissive position a bit more than was socially acceptable. "If you like, you may go visit them now."

Momiji smiled and stood, and Akito scowled as he tilted his head back. "Since when are you taller than me?" he inquired, annoyed.

Momiji smiled even wider. "I had a huge growth spurt a few years ago." He bowed, and Akito waved a hand at him, turning away to look out at his garden. So that much hadn't changed, Momiji reflected, turning to go. Akito still had problems with politeness and attention span. It was nice to see something he remembered in this foreign person.

"Oh, Momiji," Akito said, and Momiji turned to look at Akito's back. "Come have dinner with me tonight."

Momiji smiled wryly. "What would you do if I told you that I had promised my father dinner tonight?"

Startled, Akito turned to face him. "I would…" he shook his head, and smiled. Momiji stared. It was an actual smile! Not a cruel smile, but a smile made because he found something innocently funny! He swallowed, feeling his pants tighten ever so slightly and suddenly feeling the need to take more air into his lungs. "I forgot. I no longer control you. Well, tomorrow night, then."

"I—ah—" Momiji shook his head, trying to keep the situation in his pants from getting bad enough that Akito would notice it. "I hadn't actually promised my father dinner," he admitted sheepishly. "I just wanted to know how you would react if something didn't go your way."

Akito looked startled, and then he laughed, crossing the room in a flash and placing his hand on Momiji's cheek. He leaned forward, and his lips brushed the younger boy's cheek. "Well, now you know. I will see you tonight, then. Seven thirty." He drew back, eyes sparkling with something Momiji couldn't define, and turned away, walking back to his window.

…Leaving a flabbergasted young man standing there with a stubbornly developing situation in his trousers. Akito had smelled of flowers and sunshine, and when he had pressed himself up against Momiji's body, it had the boy reacting in ways he had never thought he would for the head of his family. In a daze, he left the room and walked down the hall. Never in a thousand years had he thought he would get a hard-on for Akito! True, the man had always been exceedingly handsome, but then so were all the men in the Sohma family. But now…he was different. He acted just like any other normal man.

A soft, "Oh!" drew him out of his thoughts, and in an instant his erection wilted.

Facing him further down the hall were his parents.

His eyes went straight to his mother, who had made the noise. She was staring back at him, eyes wide, one hand pressed to her mouth. Neither of them moved, and Momiji's eyes flickered once to his father, similarly paralyzed. It was as if something had pinned them all in place.

"Momiji…oh." Kureno had come around the corner, and he stopped too as he took in the frozen tableau. "I'll just talk to you later, then." And he beat a hasty retreat.

His arrival broke them out of their motionlessness, however. Momiji's mother took a step forward, and then another, eyes as wide as they could go. Then she took a deep, trembling breath. "You're…Momiji Sohma."

"Yes. I am." Momiji swallowed hard.

"Then you're…my son?" she asked, meeting his eyes.

Momiji glanced at his father, who nodded once, eyes on his wife. "Yes. I am."

"Oh." She looked at the floor. "I…you used to turn into a rabbit. But Akito says the curse was broken."

"Yes. It was. Four years ago."

"And I…willingly forgot about you?"

The young man looked away. "Yes."

With a gasp, she hugged him tight, making him stagger backward a couple paces. "I am so sorry!" she sobbed. "I…all your life I thought you were just a distant cousin, when you were really my son!"

"Shh," Momiji crooned, stroking her back. "It's all right. It wasn't your fault."

"Don't say that! Yes it _was_! It was my choice to forget about my child! I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner! You look so much like me! What kind of a mother _am_ I?"

"You did what was necessary to keep your sanity," Momiji said, his throat tight. "And you seemed to raise Momo just fine."

"And that's another thing!" she sobbed. "You never knew your sister!"

"But I have the rest of our lives to get to know you both," Momiji pointed out.

"Fascinating as this is," came a cold voice, and they all turned to see Akito standing in his doorway glaring at them, "I would prefer it if you moved the touching reunion somewhere else." He slammed his door shut.

_So Akito's anger is still something to be feared,_ mused Momiji as his father herded them away to their own rooms. _And his mood swings are as varied as ever. I wonder if there's ever any real point in them?_

—

—

—

Momiji sighed as he considered himself in the mirror. A handsome, confident man stared back at him. It was _not_ an accurate display of his feelings.

Running a hand through his hair, he smiled at his reflection and then headed out of his room and toward the head of the family's private rooms. When he arrived in front of the door, he rubbed his sweaty palms against his pants before knocking gently. Hearing a soft "Enter," he pushed the door open and entered the room.

Akito stood at the window, staring out into his garden as the sun set. There was a traditional Japanese table with place settings for two set up, and Akito was dressed in a casual button-down shirt and slacks. He turned and smiled. "Sit down," he gestured, and took his own place at the other end of the table. "How have you been, Momiji?"

Momiji shrugged and waited as maids entered carrying their food. "I've been going to college, working part-time, you know…the usual."

"Working part-time?" Akito asked, brows furrowing. "Why? You don't need the money."

Momiji smiled, picking up his chopsticks. "Itadakimasu. It's not about whether or not I need the money, it gives me something to do after school and I enjoy working. It gives me the sense that I actually support myself, rather than relying on the family for everything."

Akito shook his head. "I don't understand, but if it works for you…" he let his sentence trail off, and the two sat in silence for a while, enjoying the excellent food. "So, Momiji-kun," Akito spoke again, "Do you have any close friends at your school?"

"I have a few," Momiji replied. "The girl who drove me here is one of them, she's an American transfer student living here for the time being. We both play the violin, so we hang out a lot and are pretty good friends. She makes some mistakes sometimes 'cause she's still not used to Japan, but overall she does very well."

"Ah," Akito said, his eyes clearing. "I thought she was your girlfriend. So she is just a friend?"

Momiji almost gaped at the head of the family, but caught it in time. "Oh, no, we're not dating!" he assured the man. "It would be rather difficult, considering she's already in a committed relationship and I'm gay." He cringed immediately, waiting for the outburst that he knew was going to come from his little slip of the tongue.

"Gay? Ah. That explains why you never actively pursued that Honda girl. You were never interested in her." Momiji barely prevented himself from gaping again at Akito. _Nandeyanen!? I thought for sure he was going to rip my head off and disown me for coming out to him!_

Akito, on the other side of the table, was doing a little happy dance inside of his head. The ex-rabbit had just unwittingly given him all of the information he needed! He plotted and planned for the rest of the meal, the two of them eating in a comfortable quiet as the maids drifted in and out silently.

He dismissed the maids after dessert, leaving the two of them alone. "Would you like a drink, Momiji?" Akito asked, rising and retrieving a sake bottle and two cups.

"If it's not too much trouble," Momiji replied, watching his old god's ass move in his slacks. He unconsciously licked his lips, Akito turning just in time to catch the movement. He smirked just slightly.

"No trouble at all," he said smoothly, returning to the table and pouring sake into each of the shallow dishes. They drank in silence, Akito watching the way Momiji's eyes fluttered as his throat swallowed and imagining the way those eyes would flutter as he swallowed something else.

Akito drank his own sake, feeling it burn down his throat. Then he set his cup down, crossed to the other side of the table, and pressed his lips onto Momiji's, pushing him backwards onto the floor.

Momiji broke away with a gasp, staring up at the slim man who was now straddling his hips. "Akito-san, what are you doing?"

Akito smirked. "Isn't it obvious? I'm seducing you." He lowered his head and kissed him again, this time parting the boy's lips and shoving his tongue into his mouth. Momiji let out a moan of surprise, automatically meeting Akito's tongue with his own and curling around it. Akito nearly moaned himself, but restrained it, not wanting to let such an intimate thing show through his façade.

With a gasp, they broke for air, and Akito let his lips fall to the golden patch of skin revealed at the collar of the ex-rabbit's shirt. In a daze, he brushed his lips across it, and then went back over the skin with his tongue, wanting to know what Momiji's skin tasted like. It made Momiji gasp and shudder underneath him as Akito measured his taste thoughtfully. It tasted faintly sugary, he decided, and most of all like Momiji himself. Akito didn't have to classify it anymore; to him it simply _was_, and he dove back in with a burning desire to taste it again.

But Momiji stopped him with firm hands on his shoulders. "Akito, I don't want to do this on your floor," he said, breathing heavily and looking up at Akito with lust, desire, and some confusion in his eyes.

Slightly staggered by the amount of emotion he saw—Momiji had always _felt_ so much—Akito nodded in agreement and got off of his cousin's stomach, pulling him up and towards his bedroom. Slamming the sliding door shut behind them, the god froze as hands encircled his waist, pulling him flush against the tall, hard body behind him.

"Akito…" Momiji murmured, his hands running restlessly over the man's strong stomach and impatiently tugging the shirt out of his slacks. "Are we really going to do this?"

"Oh yes," Akito purred, turning around in the college student's arms and smirking wickedly up at him. "We most definitely are. Any objections?" Not like he really cared if he did or not.

"Ano…not really." Momiji gave a breathy laugh that sounded oddly sexy, raising his hands to unbutton Akito's shirt. As soon as it was unbuttoned all the way he slid his hands flat-palmed up the man's smooth stomach, palming his nipples and drawing a gasp from the stoic head as he pushed the shirt off of his shoulders. Bending his head just slightly, Momiji claimed another breath-stealing kiss from Akito and then broke away from him completely.

"What are—" Akito began in annoyance, but then stopped and watched as Momiji walked to the futon that was already laid out, stripping as he went. His shirt was tossed carelessly to one side, his socks were unceremoniously pulled off his feet, and as he reached the edge of the futon he turned, hands undoing his pants and a grin on his face.

"Why are you standing way over there, Akito?"

Akito didn't need to be told twice. In an instant he pounced on the lithe body being displayed for him, his mind consumed with a desire to touch every single inch of golden skin available. Momiji gave a breathless, "Whoa!" as they fell back onto the futon, then moaned as Akito's mouth found one of his nipples and sucked ruthlessly. Akito switched nipples, leaving the first glistening and erect, and began gently scraping his teeth across the other one as his hands busily finished opening Momiji's pants and stuck a hand inside.

Momiji arched up into the body above him, a startled moan breaking free as sweat began to shine over his body. "Akito, pants…off…now," he rasped, clearly done with foreplay and ready for the main course.

Akito chuckled throatily. "Patience, koibito. All good things come to those who wait, right?" He sat up and pulled Momiji's own pants off first, admiring every inch of skin as it was revealed. Then, once those were thrown off the bed, he finally began removing his own, Momiji's eyes locked onto his hands and his breathing getting heavier. Gratified by this, Akito spread himself over the young man's body and ground their erections together, both letting out shudders and moans of delight at the skin-to-skin friction.

"Ahh, Akito," Momiji gasped, pulling him down for a fierce kiss as Akito's hips slowly ground down against him. "Do you have lube?"

"Yeah, hang on." Akito rolled off of him reluctantly and retrieved the lube from his dresser where it lived. Momiji propped his head on his hand and admired the view, liking it even better as Akito turned to come back. Akito paused, looking at him warily. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Because you're beautiful," Momiji said frankly, and grinned as a blush feathered delicately across Akito's cheekbones.

"Oh. Etto…ano…" Akito didn't know how to respond to that, so he tossed the lube to Momiji and simply ignored it, climbing back onto the bed. "So, are you going to do anything with that lube, or just stare at it?" he asked, wiggling his ass enticingly on the college student's lap.

Momiji smiled and slicked up his fingers, reaching between Akito's legs and rubbing across his hole gently. "Mmm…" Akito murmured, eyes half-closing as that curious finger circled the pucker gently, coaxing the muscles to loosen and clench rhythmically. "That feels…really nice."

The finger finally pressed in, and Akito moaned, his head tilting back and his eyes closing. He'd forgotten how good this felt, the sweet burn and the slightly full feeling he got from having a finger shoved up his asshole. And he knew it could get better. "Move it," he demanded, wiggling his ass again, and Momiji obliged, soon adding another finger, amazed at the incredibly sexy man currently gyrating his hips against his hand and enjoying the two fingers brushing tantalizingly against his prostate immensely.

"Ah, Akito, you are so sexy…" Momiji murmured, taking the bobbing cock between Akito's legs and pumping it gently, circling the head with his thumb and spreading the droplets of precum generously around and adding another finger into his ass at the same time. "Are you ready yet?" He could barely hold himself back to make sure his partner was stretched enough; the ex-rabbit felt that if he didn't get inside the soft heat currently clenching around his fingers soon, his dick would spontaneously combust.

"Nnn, hai, Momiji, onegai," Akito moaned, gripping the cock below him and positioning it at his entrance. "Kami-sama, I need it so badly, hurry up Momiji, _onegai_…"

"Your wish is my command, Akito-_sama_." Momiji removed his fingers and placed his hands on Akito's hips, spreading him wider and shoving him down onto his cock in one swift move.

"Aah!" Akito groaned, head falling back again and eyes clenching shut as his breath shuddered out of him. He didn't have any experience with Momiji's age group, but he was certain that the swollen cock currently shoved up to the hilt in his ass was far above average in size. It felt _so good_. He sat there for a minute, panting, Momiji's hands forcefully holding him still as both tried to stave off coming prematurely. "Momiji, can I move yet?" Akito gasped after several minutes of simply sitting motionless.

"Un…okay, go ahead," Momiji replied, relaxing his grip and helping Akito bounce up and down on his cock. "Ahh, Akito, Jesus!" he moaned, hands slipping down to his thighs as Akito sped up, grinding his hips in a circle and doing his best to hit his prostate on every down thrust. "Slow down, you're gonna make me…"

"No way," Akito breathed, leaning forward to bite a nipple. "I've wanted this for too long to slow down now. Do you have any idea how long you've tempted me with your cute little ass and your teasing shirts? I've wanted you before it was _legal_ for me to want you. And next time we do this, you're going to be the one who gets pounded into the mattress."

Momiji threw back his head and shouted his release, Akito's voice throwing him over the edge so abruptly that he had no time to even think about helping his partner achieve his own gratification. It turned out to be irrelevant anyway, as watching Momiji writhe underneath him and feeling his cock shoot streams of hot cum deep into his body took Akito over as well, his spasming inner walls prolonging Momiji's own pleasure.

Akito collapsed onto Momiji's chest, exhausted. He loved riding his partners but it was always so _tiring _afterwards. Momiji hummed in satisfaction, arms coming up to hold Akito to him. They both lay there quietly for a while, letting their breath return to normal and their bodies cool off. Finally, when it got too cold, Akito rolled off with a groan and tugged down the covers, snuggling right back up to Momiji as soon as they both were covered up.

"We should clean up," Momiji murmured, wrapping his arms back around Akito and pulling him close, nuzzling his nose into the sweaty curls.

"Don' wanna," Akito mumbled, yawning cutely. "That's what maids are for."

Momiji chuckled, imagining the look on the maid's faces when they realized exactly what their precious Akito-sama had been up to. "How long are you here for?" Akito asked, yawning again and closing his eyes.

"Just the weekend, I have to go back to school on Monday," Momiji replied.

"Nandayo!?" Akito shot up, all sleepiness forgotten. "You're only here for two days!? No! Don't leave! Don't leave me again! Not like this!" He wrapped his arms around Momiji's chest, looking up at him with wet eyes. "Onegai," he whispered, "Don't leave me again."

Momiji's heart clenched uncomfortably, and he sighed. "I have to, Akito. I only came back because of my mother. Now that I know everything's going to be all right, I have to go back to school. Hey," he smiled, cupping Akito's cheek in one hand, "This is my last year of college, and summer break's coming up soon. I'll come back then, okay? I'll even play my violin for you, show you what I've learned in the past three years."

Akito smiled, laying his head down on Momiji's chest and listening to his heartbeat. "Yes," he agreed. "I'd like that."

—

—

—

**Hoo…It took me about…well…an awfully long time to write this! I can't believe it! And it's NOT EVEN THAT LONG! Oh well. Whatever. At least it's done now. Please drop me a few lines if you feel like it.**

**Japanese terms:**

**Okaerinasai- welcome home**

**Tadaima- I'm home, I'm back**

**Itadakimasu- thanks for the food, let's eat, I will eat now, etc.**

**Nandeyanen- what the hell**

**Ano- um**

**Koibito- lover**

**Etto- er**

**Hai- yes**

**Onegai- please**

**Kami-sama- God**

**Un- yeah**

**Nandayo- what**


End file.
